Court discontinued contempt proceedings as the contemner had obtained an undertaking from the prosecution to refrain from further steps pending the main application.
Contempt proceedings dropped; notice stands discharged.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
C/MCA/491/2022 ORDER DATED: 06/09/2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/MISC. CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 491 of 2022 In
R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 3372 of 2022
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RANMALSINH HAJURSINH THAKOR Versus KUSHAL R OZA, DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE
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Appearance:
MR AJ YAGNIK(1372) for the Applicant(s) No. 1 MR KM ANTANI, AGP for the Opponent(s) No. 1
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CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. JUSTICE ARAVIND KUMAR
and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHUTOSH J. SHASTRI
Date : 06/09/2022
ORAL ORDER
(PER : HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. JUSTICE ARAVIND KUMAR)
1. This contempt proceedings has been initiated for alleged willful disobedience of the order dated 1.4.2022 passed in Special Criminal Application No.3372 of 2022, where-under this Court while entertaining Special Criminal Application had granted interim relief as prayed for in paragraph 10(E) of the petition, namely proceedings pursuant to FIR No.11195019220138 dated 22.2.2022 came to be stayed.
2. This Court by order dated 2.8.20211 had posted this matter for framing of the charge.
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C/MCA/491/2022 ORDER DATED: 06/09/2022
3. Learned Assistant Government Pleader has submitted that contemner has met with a road traffic accident and has been hospitalized. He has also placed on record the order dated 5.8.2022 passed by 3rd Additional Sessions Judge and Special Judge, Banaskantha- Palanpur. It is the contention of Mr. Vedant Rajguru, learned counsel appearing for petitioner that on account of respondent having willfully disobeyed the order and having filed charge-sheet despite there being stay of further proceedings, this Court has arrived at a conclusion that charges are to be framed against accused for violating orders of this Court and there being no application filed for exemption by the accused, this Court may proceed against accused.
4. At the outset, it requires to be noticed that contemner no-doubt is not present. Section 317 of Code of Criminal Procedure enables the Court that at any stage of inquiry or trial, if court is satisfied that personal attendance of accused before the Court is not necessary in the interest of justice, such inquiry or trial even if in absence of accused can be proceeded and accused can be called upon to appear at any subsequent stage. In the instant case, accused- contemner is a police officer and complaint against him in this proceedings is for filing of charge-sheet before
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C/MCA/491/2022 ORDER DATED: 06/09/2022
the jurisdictional Court in furtherance of registration of FIR No.11195019220138 against petitioner herein, though further proceedings had been stayed by this Court. Accused- contemner, according to learned Assistant Government Pleader, is said to have met with a road traffic accident and is said to have been hospitalized. Thus, for a bonafide reason, he has abstained himself from the Court and for this reason, we proceed to adjudicate this contempt proceedings even in the absence of the accused contemner.
5. By our order dated 2.8.2022, we had held that charge is to be framed after having taken note of the fact that order passed by this Court on 1.4.2022 had been communicated to the jurisdictional Court and I.O. on 11.4.2022 and charge-sheet having been presented on 13.4.2022 before the Registrar, District Court, Palanpur and as such, the jurisdictional Court has ordered for registration of Sessions Case. In order to enable the contemner to purge in the contempt, we ordered for listing of the matter today and in the interregnum, i.e. after passing of order dated 2.8.2022 and before 5.8.2022, an order has been passed by Sessions Court on the application filed by the prosecution for de-registration of the charge-sheet that said Court would not take further steps in
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C/MCA/491/2022 ORDER DATED: 06/09/2022
pursuance to the charge-sheet till disposal of Special Criminal Application No.3372 of 2022. Thus, contemner having taken steps as excepted of a reasonable prudent person by filing necessary application for de-registration of charge-sheet and said prayer having been partially granted by the learned Sessions Judge, as observed herein-above, we are of the considered view that it would not be necessary to continue the contempt proceedings against accused, particularly when learned Sessions Judge has recorded the undertaking of the prosecution that no further precipitative steps would be taken against the complainant during pendency of Special Criminal Application No.3372 of 2022 and the apprehension of the complainant that there is likelihood of either Sessions Court proceeding with the matter or jurisdictional police taking any steps against the petitioner gets allayed. Hence, we DROP this contempt proceedings. Notice stands discharged.
Sd/(ARAVIND KUMAR,CJ)
Sd/(ASHUTOSH J. SHASTRI, J)
OMKAR
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2 issues framed by the court
Whether contempt proceedings should continue given the contemner's exemption from prosecution and the stay order
Whether the filing of a charge-sheet constitutes willful disobedience of the court order
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
Section 317 of Code of Criminal ProcedureExplained¶21
RANMALSINH HAJURSINH THAKOR
KUSHAL R OZA
ARAVIND KUMAR
ASHUTOSH J. SHASTRI
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
